Synopsis:
Victoria Greenly (Francis) left Philadelphia where she was "safe and
comfortable" with hopes of establishing a law practice in Medicine Bow.
Arriving in town, she
wishes to rent a vacant building that belongs to Judge Garth, but the
Virginian (who is in charge of the Judge's affairs while he's away)
has doubts that a female lawyer would be able to secure enough business to
make the payments. Betsy asks him if he thinks a woman's place is in the
home to which he replies, "No, as long as she's not MY woman." The foreman
has
refused to pay Jack Morgan (Pratt) until he makes adjustments to the saddle
he had made for him, and Morgan, who says that he's been making that type of
rig for years and no one in Missouri had ever complained, sues. Although
reluctant to hire any lawyer at all, the Virginian finally allows Victoria
to take his case. After studying the types of saddles and their uses the
young woman competently argues in court and wins a compromise between the
two
plaintiffs when the presiding judge comes to the conclusion that you "can't
put a Wyoming man on a Missouri saddle." Victoria gains the respect of
the Virginian as well as others, including Judge Garth who has arrived back
in town just in time to hear her speech. Some men have been trespassing on
Shiloh property and butchering the Judge's beef. After unsuccessful
attempts to get them to leave the Virginian takes them under arrest,
wanting only to charge them for trespassing not hang them for stealing
cattle.
Victoria, who would like to prove herself as a "woman" as well as
an attorney, invites the
Virginian to a dinner which she intends to prepare herself (even though
she's never cooked before). But after she puts everything on the stove a
boy to whom
she'd promised to pay a nickel if he'd tell her when anyone was put in
jail comes with the news that three men have been locked up. She leaves her
stew and biscuits and uses her own money to bail out the rustlers that
the Virginian had turned over to Ryker, promising also to represent them
even though they claimed to have no money to pay her legal fee. When
Victoria gets
back to her house
charred remains are all that is left of her dinner. Mrs. Clancy (Corby)
happily comes to the rescue. The Virginian is impressed by supper, but the
conversation soon centers around his thoughts about the difficulty of women
balancing a career with a home. As he leaves Victoria tells the truth that
it was her governess who did the cooking because she had let her meal burn
while spending too much time at the sheriff's office bailing out three men.
The foreman recognizes that these were the men he had put in jail for
butchering beef but understands Victoria was unaware of that because only a
trespassing charge had been filed--and, besides, by now he is more
taken with the lady herself than her legal prowess and cooking
skills. As they stand in the doorway for a goodnight kiss, the rustlers
shoot at them. No one is hurt, and the men soon go their way. While the
Virginian is consoling Victoria a man from the Governor's office who had
been
impressed by her rhetoric at the trial comes with news that the Governor has
invited her to be the first woman in the territory to join his staff. The
Virginian would like for her to stay but encourages Victoria to take the
position reminding her of what she had once told him--"If one woman takes a
step forward all women benefit."
(bj)